The 47 County Governments can now breathe a collective sigh of relief after President Uhuru Kenyatta signed into law, Tuesday, the Division of Revenue bill 2019, effectively unlocking Ksh.378B due to the devolved units for the 2019/20 financial year.
Out of the total allocation, Ksh.316B is an equitable share of national revenue while Ksh.61.6B will take the form of conditional grants allocated to the counties.
A statement from the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit (PSCU) said Treasury had already disbursed Ksh.50B to counties to cater for the months of July and August.
The signing of the bill into law ends nearly four months of a crippling cash crunch faced by counties as the National Assembly and the Senate haggled over the exact amount of funds to be allocated to the devolved units.
While the National Assembly favored the Ksh.316B proposed by Treasury, the Senate insisted on a higher figure, Ksh.335B, which had been suggested by the Commission on Revenue Allocation.
Two weeks ago the Senate, however, reluctantly, surrendered to the position taken by the National Assembly, unlocking the stalemate which had also found its way into the Supreme Court of Kenya for mediation.
Speaking after assenting to the bill, the President called on county Governments to finalize their budget processes which, he said, should prioritize settlement of bills pending to suppliers such as the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency so as to facilitate the delivery of the ongoing universal health coverage program.